The issue of internal displacement, internal migration, and external asylum is a significant burden on the Syrian economy. On the one hand, the lack of a comprehensive strategy characterizes the behavior of the main actors (those involved in promoting the political process) in alleviating the causes of this migration, especially the absence of a safe environment for the presence of refugees, the lack of opportunities for local security, and the lack of safe spaces for activities. On the other hand, this issue faces significant challenges related to the lack of safe service providers that meet the demands of the displaced. On the other hand, it is related to the lack of unification of local and international efforts within the framework of the political process to build a “dignified return” program. While these strategies are absent from the agenda, they are not sufficient. We also wish to highlight the extent of the various crises and threats facing these areas, as well as their negative and unsupportive intervention in relief, development, early response, and recovery efforts. Given the extent to which the continuity of development is linked to the effectiveness of the role played by the “development sector,” which has been affected by the role and function of the various forms of governance in Syria on the one hand, and the uneven sustainability of governance there on the other, and its impact on the return of refugees and displaced persons, the problem of this paper and its proposal is to explore all the data indicating the safe environment that motivates the emergence of crises and the achievement of national and regional developments that are conducive to the re-escalation of the conflict. From this problem, several questions crystallize, which the paper will attempt to answer. Corridor: What is the reality of the security environments that have been formed, and what are the challenges facing the regime and its allies in the context of the safe environment? Finally, we will discuss the features of the general and national vision for the concept of a safe environment within the Syrian context. This paper can be considered a summary of the American project in this regard since the beginning of 2020, through which it aims to shed light on this problem from several angles. The paper examines the refugees’ perspectives on the return and its security implications, and the concept of civil relations, the institutional and governance framework for a secure and supportive environment. The paper focuses on security indicators that impact the lives of citizens in general, monitoring all security operations, including attacks, bombings, attacks, and kidnappings across Syria. The paper also relied on focus groups conducted inside Syria, in areas retaken by the regime in 2018, and on national contexts, in addition to a dialogue workshop and individual discussions in Turkey.
Since the outbreak of the Syrian uprising and its subsequent conflict, the international community has been grappling with the Syrian file, with the cries of sympathy and regret for the issue being addressed by the international community and its organizations, on the need to address the crisis and its repercussions and prevent the destabilization of the region. This has necessitated a “crisis management” approach and a balance of power in the conflict, which reflects the regional and international security interests and the demands of governance in the conflict’s resources and directions. The main axis was the efforts of the relevant organizations and political circles to address the humanitarian crisis, given its impact and repercussions on the regional situation. On the operational side, the international conventions concerned with the Syrian issue, both political and humanitarian, did not address the refugee and migration issue, with the exception of Article 14 of Resolution 2254, which emphasized “creating conditions conducive to the safe and voluntary return of refugees and internally displaced persons to their homes and the rehabilitation of affected areas,” and the commitment of the States concerned to provide assistance in this regard. This issue was also absent during the rounds of negotiations in Geneva, except for a formal schedule for the 10th round of the talks, held on July 30-31, 2018. These included (a) a discussion on the return of refugees and displaced persons, but without an outcome (15) from the UNHCR. According to the indicators of the deteriorating situation in Syria, there are more than 6.7 million Syrian refugees in the world (as of June 2019), and more than 6.1 million internally displaced persons (as of August 2019), and more than 11 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance in Syria. The situation in northeast Syria, according to UNHCR, is “dire,” with approximately 1,650,000 people now in need of humanitarian assistance (as of September 2019). Response statistics in northern Syria also indicate that nearly one million people from Hama, Idlib, and the countryside around Aleppo have been displaced by the fighting that took place in those governorates during the first months of 2020. As the scale of this crisis grows and its social and economic repercussions and consequences grow, urgent questions about the Syrian situation are becoming more pressing.
Regarding this file, its position and contribution to the Syrian conflict, and its connection to the safe environment file, the national and political definition, and we urge the decision-makers in the countries hosting Syrian refugees not to be complacent in their return policies. The data confirms the deterioration of the safe return index, and to establish a safe environment that preserves the individual rights and facilitates the movement of the groups. The paper emphasizes the need to continue the pressure exerted by the relevant civil society organizations to address the issue of those affected in regime-held areas, and to push international bodies to pressure this issue as a precondition for the political process to directly link it to the demands of continuity and collective cohesion.
